Mr. Speaker, a democratic society works because we have mutual respect for one another's rights. If I want somebody to treat me fairly and respect my rights, I have to do that with the other person.
The very nature of criminal law is when people ignore other people's rights. The ultimate crime, of course, is murder. Murderers deprive citizens of their rights when they terminate their very existence, which undermines the whole democratic process. Society as a whole would collapse if people did not have respect for one another's right.
It seems to me that a natural consequence of committing a serious criminal offence is that one is deprived of some of one's rights in society. It is a reasonable thing. It can be justified. One of those rights is the right to participate in the democratic process by voting.
Without getting into a legalistic argument with the parliamentary secretary on court decisions, does he not feel that a natural consequence of committing serious crimes should be that people will be deprived of some of their rights under the charter? When people break that social contract is that not the bedrock of our democratic society?